Press Releases

Blackboard Announces Expanded Program for BbWorld

Sugata Mitra, Clay Shirky to Deliver Keynotes

Jun 6, 2013

WASHINGTON, June 6, 2013 /PRNewswire/ -- Blackboard Inc. today announced an expanded program for BbWorld®, the company's annual user conference and one of the largest education technology conferences of the year. Scheduled for July 9-11 in Las Vegas, Nevada, BbWorld will feature over 235 sessions making it the largest and most diverse program to date.

Over 3,000 administrators, academic leaders, instructors and technical experts from around the world will attend BbWorld to network with their peers and share best practices. The program will focus on key issues in education including student retention, mobile technology, online programs and analytics. BbWorld will also include dedicated session tracks designed specifically for teachers and faculty, system administrators, chief technology officers and enrollment and admissions officers at colleges and universities.

"You'll never have a better opportunity to talk to so many intelligent, experienced and dedicated professionals than at BbWorld," said Paul Erickson, enterprise architect at the University of Nebraska at Lincoln. "By going to BbWorld, you have access to peers and Blackboard experts who really understand and care about what you do. If there is a problem that you are struggling with, chances are excellent that the person next to you has already solved it or would love to work with you to get it solved."

BbWorld will feature keynote presentations from Sugata Mitra, professor of education technology at Newcastle University and TED Prize winner who is widely known for his "Hole in the Wall" experiment and Clay Shirky, Internet expert, consultant and bestselling author of Here Comes Everybody: The Power of Organizing without Organizations.

Blackboard staff, technical experts and partners will lead a number of sessions on how institutions and users can get the most out of their technology initiatives. Jay Bhatt, Blackboard president and chief executive officer, will lead a keynote session highlighting the company's work to support clients and users with the latest in education technology.

"We are excited to gather with a truly unique community of practice," said Bhatt. "BbWorld is a special chance to gather with educators, administrators and technologists from around the world who are driving new approaches to teaching and learning with technology."

DevCon, the annual meeting of institutional and third party developers working to extend learning platforms, will take place alongside BbWorld. Award-winning entrepreneur, researcher and author Gene Kim will deliver a keynote presentation.

About Blackboard Inc. Blackboard Inc. is a global leader in enterprise technology and innovative solutions that improve the experience of millions of students and learners around the world every day. Blackboard's solutions allow thousands of higher education, K-12, professional, corporate, and government organizations to extend teaching and learning online, facilitate campus commerce and security, and communicate more effectively with their communities. Founded in 1997, Blackboard is headquartered in Washington, D.C., with offices in North America, Europe, Asia and Australia.

Any statements in this press release about future expectations, plans and prospects for Blackboard represent the Company's views as of the date of this press release. Actual results may differ materially as a result of various important factors. The Company anticipates that subsequent events and developments will cause the Company's views to change. However, while the Company may elect to update these statements at some point in the future, the Company specifically disclaims any obligation to do so.